Cheapest AI Model for Coding Agents in 2026: Real ₹ Cost per Task
For most coding-agent work in Cline, OpenCode, Roo Code or Zed, DeepSeek V4 Flash is the cheapest model that still codes well. One agent step costs about ₹0.09 on V4 Flash, against ₹7.25 on Claude Sonnet 5, roughly 78 times less. It also scores 65 on the coding index, ahead of Kimi K2.6 and GLM 4.7.
Developers on Velona have already worked this out. DeepSeek V4 Flash handles about 46% of all API requests on the platform, more than six times the next most used model. Below are the real rupee numbers for 13 models, what a full coding task costs on each, and how to set up a cheap model in your agent.
Why coding agents get expensive
A coding agent doesn't send one prompt. It works in a loop: read files, plan, edit, run a command, read the result, and go again. On every step it resends the conversation and the relevant code as input.
In anonymised request logs on Velona, typical coding-agent calls send 15,000 to 42,000 input tokens and get back only a few hundred output tokens. So for agents, the input price matters far more than the output price, and a model that looks cheap per answer can become expensive per task.
Cost per agent step and per task in rupees
The table assumes one agent step sends 30,000 input tokens and receives 1,000 output tokens, and that a typical task takes 25 steps. Prices are Velona's live rupee prices as of 4 October 2026, before any caching discounts.
| Model | Input ₹ / 1M | Output ₹ / 1M | Coding index | ₹ per step | ₹ per 25-step task |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | ₹2.90 | ₹5.80 | 65 | ₹0.09 | ₹2.32 |
| GPT-OSS 120B | ₹3.83 | ₹17.61 | 23.2 | ₹0.13 | ₹3.31 |
| DeepSeek V4 Pro | ₹21.63 | ₹43.27 | not listed | ₹0.69 | ₹17.30 |
| DeepSeek V3.2 | ₹29.01 | ₹43.52 | 44.2 | ₹0.91 | ₹22.85 |
| GLM 4.7 | ₹62.17 | ₹227.94 | 45.3 | ₹2.09 | ₹52.33 |
| Kimi K2.6 | ₹98.43 | ₹414.44 | 61.8 | ₹3.37 | ₹84.18 |
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | ₹103.61 | ₹518.05 | not listed | ₹3.63 | ₹90.66 |
| GPT-5 | ₹129.51 | ₹1,036 | 77.4 | ₹4.92 | ₹123.03 |
| Grok 4.5 | ₹207.22 | ₹621.66 | 72.4 | ₹6.84 | ₹170.96 |
| Claude Sonnet 5 | ₹207.22 | ₹1,036 | not listed | ₹7.25 | ₹181.31 |
| Gemini 3.1 Pro | ₹207.22 | ₹1,243 | 68.8 | ₹7.46 | ₹186.49 |
| Claude Opus 4.8 | ₹518.05 | ₹2,590 | 74.3 | ₹18.13 | ₹453.29 |
| Claude Fable 5 | ₹1,036 | ₹5,180 | 81.6 | ₹36.26 | ₹906.50 |
Coding index scores are the Artificial Analysis coding index as shown on our best models for coding page. "Not listed" means no score is published there yet.
Over a month, the gap gets large. At 5 tasks a day for 22 working days, DeepSeek V4 Flash costs about ₹255, DeepSeek V4 Pro about ₹1,900, Claude Sonnet 5 about ₹19,900 and Claude Opus 4.8 about ₹49,900.
What developers on Velona actually pay per request
Our 30,000-token step is a modelling assumption. Real agents often send more context than that, so here are the average costs per request across all Velona users, from aggregated and anonymised usage data up to 3 October 2026:
| Model | Share of all requests | Average cost per request |
|---|---|---|
| DeepSeek V4 Flash (both versions) | 46% | ₹0.27 to ₹0.32 |
| DeepSeek V3.2 | 7% | ₹0.69 |
| DeepSeek V4 Pro | 2.5% | ₹1.38 |
| Qwen 3.5 122B | 2% | ₹1.93 |
The real averages are higher than our per-step estimate because many requests carry far more than 30,000 tokens of context. Even so, a typical request on V4 Flash costs about 30 paise.
Which model to use for your coding agent
- Default: DeepSeek V4 Flash. Use it for everyday edits, tests, refactors and explaining code. It has a 1M-token context window and runs at about 220 tokens per second.
- When Flash gets stuck: DeepSeek V4 Pro. It is DeepSeek's strongest model and still costs about ₹17 for a 25-step task.
- For hard planning or tricky bugs: GPT-5 or Claude Sonnet 5. Use them for a few steps, then switch back.
- Rarely: Claude Opus 4.8 or Claude Fable 5. Fable 5 has the highest coding score on the list, but one task can cost over ₹900.
The cheapest setup that still handles hard work is two models: a strong model for planning and a cheap model for doing. Cline, for example, lets you choose a different model for its Plan and Act modes. Put Claude Sonnet 5 or GPT-5 on Plan and DeepSeek V4 Flash on Act, and most of your steps run at the cheap rate.
How to set up a cheap model in your coding agent
Every tool below works with Velona's OpenAI-compatible endpoint. You need three things: the base URL https://velona.in/v1, your Velona API key, and a model ID such as deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash.
Cline (VS Code)
- Open Cline's settings and choose OpenAI Compatible as the API provider.
- Set the Base URL to
https://velona.in/v1. - Paste your Velona API key.
- Enter the model ID
deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash.
OpenCode
Add Velona as a custom provider in your OpenCode config:
{
"$schema": "https://opencode.ai/config.json",
"provider": {
"velona": {
"npm": "@ai-sdk/openai-compatible",
"name": "Velona",
"options": {
"baseURL": "https://velona.in/v1"
},
"models": {
"deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash": { "name": "DeepSeek V4 Flash" },
"deepseek/deepseek-v4-pro": { "name": "DeepSeek V4 Pro" },
"anthropic/claude-sonnet-5": { "name": "Claude Sonnet 5" }
}
}
}
}Then authenticate OpenCode with your Velona key and pick a model.
Roo Code, Zed, Continue and others
Look for an OpenAI-compatible or custom provider option, then enter the same base URL, key and model ID. Our coding agents setup guide walks through more tools.
Five ways to cut your agent bill further
- Keep the context small. Exclude build folders, lock files and assets from what the agent reads. Cline supports a
.clineignorefile for this. - Start fresh tasks. A long-running task keeps growing its context, and every step resends all of it.
- Switch models mid-task. Drop back to V4 Flash once the hard part is solved.
- Set a budget per API key. On Velona you can cap each key, so an agent stuck in a loop can't drain your wallet.
- Watch the usage page. Your usage dashboard shows the rupee cost of every request, so you can see which tasks are expensive.
Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest AI model for coding?
Among models with a published coding score on Velona, DeepSeek V4 Flash is the cheapest at ₹2.90 per 1M input tokens and ₹5.80 per 1M output tokens, with a coding index of 65. GPT-OSS 120B is close in price but scores much lower on coding.
Is DeepSeek V4 Flash good enough for coding agents?
For most everyday tasks, yes. It scores 65 on the coding index, ahead of Kimi K2.6 (61.8) and GLM 4.7 (45.3), and it handles about 46% of all requests on Velona. For the hardest problems, switch to DeepSeek V4 Pro, GPT-5 or Claude Sonnet 5 for a few steps.
How much does a coding agent cost per month?
At 5 tasks a day of about 25 steps each, expect roughly ₹255 a month on DeepSeek V4 Flash, ₹1,900 on DeepSeek V4 Pro and ₹19,900 on Claude Sonnet 5. Your real cost depends mostly on how much context your agent sends each step.
Can I pay for these models in rupees?
Yes. Velona prices every model in rupees and you top up with UPI, RuPay, a domestic card or net banking, starting from ₹10. No international card is needed.
Is prompt caching included in these numbers?
No. All figures are calculated without caching discounts, so treat them as an upper estimate for the same amount of context.
Try it on your own code
Add ₹10 with UPI, create a key with a small budget, and point your coding agent at DeepSeek V4 Flash. Run one real task and check the cost in your usage dashboard. Most developers are surprised how far ₹10 goes.